Cicada Moving

Chapter 1315 Footprints

It rained heavily all night, and all the military special agents, including Zuo Zhong, also stayed up all night. Everyone stood by the ditch to protect the newly discovered footprints.

In the middle of the night, the rainwater almost broke through the drainage channel and flowed into the ditch. Fortunately, it was discovered in time, and the agents carried out dredging in the rain, so that the only clues were not lost.

After daybreak, more technicians and equipment arrived, and the footprint extraction work started.

Modern identification research on footprints in the Republic of China began in 1932, when the Ministry of Justice established the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Shanghai, which was the most authoritative forensic identification institution and forensic research institution in the country.

Based on the research results of the Forensic Medicine Institute, the military technical department has long mastered the footprint inspection technology through actual combat.

When technicians arrived at the scene, they first laid wooden piles on both sides of the ditch to prevent the ditch walls from collapsing and destroying physical evidence. Then they used diesel generators and tungsten lamps to completely illuminate the ditch.

With preparations in place, the two agents slowly descended into the ditch, holding ropes, measuring rulers, and cameras to start taking pictures and surveying.

After preliminary investigation, a total of eleven pairs of footprints belonging to different people were found at the site. Most of the footprints were in a poor state of preservation, and only three pairs of footprints were relatively clear.

"The footprints were found, suspect A. The length of the footprints is 27.3 centimeters, the width is 10.4 centimeters, the depth is 0.8 centimeters, and the stride length is about 85 centimeters."

"Suspect B's footprints are 25.6 centimeters long, 9.2 centimeters wide, about 1.2 centimeters deep, and 80 centimeters long."

"Suspect C's footprints are 28.5 centimeters long, 11.0 centimeters wide, about 0.6 centimeters deep, and 85 centimeters long."

While the two agents were surveying, they loudly reported the situation above the ditch. The pen in the recorder's hand quickly recorded and drew a schematic diagram at the same time.

After this step is completed, the survey work enters the next process. Professional environmental surveyors carry hygrometers and thermometers and jump into the ditch to measure the environmental factors on site.

Different environmental conditions will affect the shape and legibility of the footprints, so the temperature and soil moisture at the site need to be analyzed to evaluate the aging and deformation of the footprints.

After all the above work was done, after some calculations and comparisons, Song Minghao took the report to Zuo Zhong and reported the footprint identification results.

"Side seat, suspect A's soles have bas-relief patterns, and the pattern is cross-stripes, showing an obvious single pattern. The soles are worn evenly, indicating that the shoes have been used for a period of time, but have not reached extreme levels of wear."

"Based on the length of his feet, it is estimated that the opponent is about 178-182 centimeters tall. Based on the depth of his footprints and the width of his feet, he weighs 75-85 kilograms. His steps are relatively well-proportioned and his walking speed is normal."

Song Minghao read out the contents of the report, and Zuo Zhong was a little surprised.

When the weather station was blown up, the people who benefited the most were the Japanese. Based on this idea, the murderer should be a Japanese intelligence officer.

But the suspect above is considered a tough guy even in the West, and it is even rarer to see him in Japan.

Let’s not talk about whether there are such strong men in the Japanese intelligence agencies. Even if there are, such people should not become covert operators because they are too conspicuous and can easily be remembered by witnesses.

While Zuo Zhong was thinking, Song Minghao continued to report on the situation of B and C. They were similar to A. The two suspects were also much taller than ordinary people.

Person B is about 175-180 cm tall and weighs 70-80 kg.

Person C is 180-185 cm tall and weighs 85-95 kg.

After finishing speaking, Song Minghao closed the report and asked the doubts in his mind: "Second Officer, judging from the height and weight, the suspects seem to be very strong. It should not be difficult to find witnesses, but why didn't we find them?"

Yes, why didn't you notice it? Zuo Zhong nodded slightly, looked to the northeast, and suddenly turned back after a moment and asked.

"Old Song, this is northeast of the weather station, right?"

"Yes, deputy seat."

"That is to say, the weather station and Tugou are both in the southwest of the Jialing River, and the Tugou is located between the weather station and the Jialing River." Zuo Zhong affirmed: "It seems that our previous speculation was correct. The suspect did pass through Weather station accessible by water.”

Song Minghao knew what Zuo Zhong meant. The Jialing River, Tugou, and the weather station were on the same line. This must not be a coincidence. He roughly outlined the murderer's action route in his mind.

The murderer landed on the riverside, lurked all the way to the ditch with hidden traces, waited until dark to approach the weather station, completed the task, then returned to the original route to board the ship and leave.

After thinking about it, Song Minghao gave his opinion: "Deputy Chairman, now it depends on Chunyang's investigation. There are so many strong men that no one can pay attention to.

Even if the suspects live and eat on the boat, they still have to purchase supplies or refuel and add coal. And since patrols on the river are so frequent, someone must have seen them. "

This is true. No matter whether the suspect comes from other places or sets off from a mountain city to the weather station, as long as he takes a boat, he will definitely encounter inspections on the way. When it comes to fishing for oil and water, the people in the government are definitely conscientious.

Zuo Zhong thought for a moment and shouted to the little agent: "Inform Director Wu of the footprint inspection results and tell him to expand the scope of the investigation if no findings are found."

Shancheng, the main hall of Wenren Hall of Ge Laohui (section 899).

Wu Chunyang and Sun Renyi, the flag-bearer of Wenrentang, talked frequently. This person had cooperated with the military commander for many years and was considered a peripheral force of the military commander.

This time to investigate the murderer, the first person Wu Chunyang contacted was the other party. It is better to use the familiar than the raw. Moreover, Wenrentang's strength is not what it used to be, and it has firmly occupied the top spot in the Shancheng Brother Association. We have the protection of the military commander and the police department, and huge financial support (replicated Japanese yen) below. If these cannot come forward, then the military commander will have to consider changing his support to someone else.

Sun Renyi glanced at Wu Chunyang quietly and said flatteringly: "Director Wu, I don't know why you are looking for those people. If there is a case, I can find a few people to blame."

"Haha, take the blame?"

Wu Chunyang put down the tea bowl in his hand and squinted his eyes: "Are you sure you want your people to take the blame for the case our military commander wants to investigate?"

Hearing this, Sun Renyi smiled dryly and slapped himself a few times: "It's the old man who made a mistake. Don't worry, I have already sent all my people out, and there will be news soon."

Being a dog has a habit. Sun Zhangqi, who used to be a bit unruly, had no other thoughts after seeing the power of Jun Tong. Now he just wants to follow Jun Tong and drink some soup.

At this time, a small agent walked up to Wu Chunyang, whispered a few words, and handed over a document. Wu Chunyang nodded, pushed the document to Sun Renyi and said.

"Old Sun, let your people focus on screening tall people. This is a specific screening standard. Is it okay?"

Sun Renyi took it and took a look, and immediately patted his chest. The three of them were all tall and strong, so it shouldn't be difficult to find them.

But the slap in the face came. One day passed, Wenrentang's Pao Ge asked all along the Jialing River and on the ships, but still couldn't find any clues.

Fishermen, sailors, dock workers, coal field laborers, and even small vendors, none of these Ge Lao Hui members who make a living on the Jialing River have ever seen anyone who meets the criteria of being suspicious.

In addition, an investigation operation targeting government and military ships also ended in failure.

It was learned that the investigation was related to the weather station sabotage case, and all agencies involved cooperated fully, and no matter who was involved in the case, they would be handed over.

The agents interviewed relevant personnel, and the results showed that, in addition to foreign warships, all ships on the Jialing River had been inspected before and after the incident, and the personnel had also been registered.

There were indeed passengers or crew members who met the screening conditions, and the agents immediately tracked them down, either visiting them in person or contacting the ship's company.

However, after background checks and verification of their whereabouts at the time of the crime, the suspects of these people were eliminated one by one, and the investigation seemed to have reached a dead end.

After receiving the report from his subordinates, Wu Chunyang looked uncertain. There were no more than two reasons for this situation.

Either there was something wrong with their speculation, and the murderer did not arrive at the weather station by water, at least not by the Jialing River.

Either the murderer was on a foreign warship.

The first easy thing to investigate is that Shancheng City is bounded by the Jialing River to the north and the Yangtze River to the south. Since the Jialing River has not been found, let Wenrentang investigate the latter. Maybe the murderer used the Yangtze River route to spread suspicion.

The real trouble is the second one. Starting from the previous dynasty, many countries stationed fleets on the coasts and port cities of the Republic of China.

After the war between China and Japan, some of the foreign ships that were docked along the coast and in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River returned to their homeland or colonies, and some moved westward to mountain towns with the government.

As of this year, there are still several British and American gunboats that have not left the Republic of China.

Of course, these warships stayed in mountain cities not to protect the national government, but to protect the commercial and political interests of their respective countries. They ran rampant on the river, making the fishermen of the Republic of China miserable.

When Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and Europe and the United States declared war on Japan, the British and American warships stationed in the mountain city were blocked in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River.

Even so, the other party still behaved erratically. Not only did they forcefully demand supplies from the government, but the sailors on the ship also repeatedly harassed female students from the Republic of China, which aroused dissatisfaction among the people.

If we expect these **** to cooperate with the military, we might as well expect the Japanese to retreat. Wu Chunyang thought about it and felt that it didn't matter if he didn't investigate.

The British's Asian colonies were being attacked by the Japanese, and they needed the government's support in Asian affairs. There was no reason to destroy the weather station.

Americans are even less likely to do so. The weather station was built with the help of the Americans, and it was an American expert who died. There is no reason to blame oneself.

The origin of the murderer cannot be determined. There is only one thing that can be determined. The murderer may have bribed the British and American fleets in Chongqing to use them as transportation to and from the scene.

Wu Chunyang's eyes flashed, and he whispered to his men to check the financial situation of the British and American sailors staying in Chongqing, especially the officers, focusing on whether they had large deposits in banks or rented safes.

There are many foreign banks in mountain cities. These people will not be stupid enough to keep the cash and gold bars they receive. They will definitely be deposited in the bank. Otherwise, they will tell everyone that they have a problem.

Once it is discovered that officers of the British and American fleets have unidentified income or have valuable property stored in safes, the case will become clear.

Wu Chunyang was convinced that if the British and Americans had a secret deal with the murderer, they would be 100% prepared, such as remembering the murderer's characteristics and selling this information if necessary.

Two days later, there was still a week before Melos left for the Republic of China. The four investigation directions determined by Zuo Zhong were basically completed, and everyone held a second meeting at the weather station.